Utilizing multiple dimensions of commerce and streaming data to provide advanced user profiling and realtime commerce choices

ABSTRACT

Multiple dimensions of commerce and streaming data are able to be used to provide advanced user profiling and realtime commerce choices. By performing site and experience analytics, video analytics, commerce analytics and user analytics, better commerce choices are able to be presented to the user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/981,683, filed Dec. 28, 2015 and titled, “PERSONALIZEDINTEGRATED VIDEO USER EXPERIENCE,” which claims priority under 35 U.S.C.§119(e) of the U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/099,897,filed Jan. 5, 2015 and titled, “PERSONALIZED INTEGRATED VIDEO USEREXPERIENCE,” which are both hereby incorporated by reference in theirentireties for all purposes. This application claims priority under 35U.S.C. §119(e) of the U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.62/272,006, filed Dec. 28, 2015 and titled, “BLU-RAY PAIRING WITH VIDEOPORTAL,” U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/272,011, filedDec. 28, 2015 and titled, “INTEGRATED MULTI-PLATFORM USER INTERFACE/USEREXPERIENCE,” and “U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.62/272,018, filed Dec. 28, 2015 and titled, “UTILIZING MULTIPLEDIMENSIONS OF COMMERCE AND STREAMING DATA TO PROVIDE ADVANCED USERPROFILING AND REALTIME COMMERCE CHOICES,” which are all herebyincorporated by reference in their entireties for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of content (e.g. video)consumption, and more particularly, to a user interface for the contentconsumption.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With portable devices, for example, laptop computers, tablet computersand cellular telephones becoming commonplace, access to and consumptionof video and television content has become easier than ever before. Withthe myriad types and genres of content available for consumption,consumers may be inundated with myriad choices to select. In addition tothe large number of choices of content, each piece of content typicallycoincides with advertising from third party companies that want to sellproducts and/or services to users. These ads may not be welcomed by theuser as the ads typically are not of any interest to the user.Additionally, the ads may also not be related to the content that isbeing consumed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The summary of the invention described herein merely provides exemplaryembodiments and is not meant to be limiting in any manner.

Multiple dimensions of commerce and streaming data are able to be usedto provide advanced user profiling and realtime commerce choices. Byperforming site and experience analytics, video analytics, commerceanalytics and user analytics, better commerce choices are able to bepresented to the user.

In one aspect, a method programmed in a non-transitory memory of adevice comprises performing analytics of user interactivity between auser and online content and providing a commerce choice based on theanalytics. The analytics includes at least one of site and experienceanalytics, video analytics, commerce analytics and user analytics. Siteand experience analytics includes monitoring user selections of content.Video analytics includes determining types of videos watched bycategorizing each video, and when a user selects a video, incrementing acount in a category. Commerce analytics includes monitoring clicks ofcontent and monitoring sales information. User analytics includestracking user actions and user information. Providing the commercechoice based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up with a couponand/or purchasing capabilities. Providing the commerce choice includesdisplaying an additional video or audio for rent or purchase.

In another aspect, an apparatus comprises a non-transitory memory forstoring an application, the application for: performing analytics ofuser interactivity between a user and online content and providing acommerce choice based on the analytics and a processing componentcoupled to the memory, the processing component configured forprocessing the application. The analytics includes at least one of siteand experience analytics, video analytics, commerce analytics and useranalytics. Site and experience analytics includes monitoring userselections of content. Video analytics includes determining types ofvideos watched by categorizing each video, and when a user selects avideo, incrementing a count in a category. Commerce analytics includesmonitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information. Useranalytics includes tracking user actions and user information. Providingthe commerce choice based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-upwith a coupon and/or purchasing capabilities. Providing the commercechoice includes displaying an additional video or audio for rent orpurchase.

In another aspect, a system comprises a first device configured forperforming analytics of user interactivity between a user and onlinecontent and a second device configured for providing a commerce choicebased on the analytics. The analytics includes at least one of site andexperience analytics, video analytics, commerce analytics and useranalytics. Site and experience analytics includes monitoring userselections of content. Video analytics includes determining types ofvideos watched by categorizing each video, and when a user selects avideo, incrementing a count in a category. Commerce analytics includesmonitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information. Useranalytics includes tracking user actions and user information. Providingthe commerce choice based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-upwith a coupon and/or purchasing capabilities. Providing the commercechoice includes displaying an additional video or audio for rent orpurchase.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the personalized interactive userexperience system according to some embodiments;

FIG. 2 is an expanded schematic diagram of the personalized interactiveuser experience according to some embodiments;

FIG. 3A is a schematic representation of the user interface according tosome embodiments showing the presentation of targeted advertising;

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary screenshot of the user interfaceaccording to some embodiments showing the presentation of targetedadvertising;

FIG. 4 illustrates the interactive user interface provided by theapplication program according to some embodiments;

FIGS. 5-10 illustrate the interactive user interface provided by theapplication program according to some embodiments;

FIG. 11 is illustrates a program guide corresponding to live televisionprovided by the application according to some embodiments;

FIGS. 12-14 illustrate exemplary screenshots of a user interfaceoverlaid on a streaming video according to some embodiments;

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating the control of videoplayback according to some embodiments;

FIG. 16 illustrates a flowchart of a method of interacting with astreaming content and an overlaid user interface according to someembodiments;

FIG. 17 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computing deviceconfigured to implement the personalized integrated video userexperience according to some embodiments;

FIG. 18 illustrates a diagram of a network of devices according to someembodiments;

FIG. 19 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing a Blu-ray™player and a video portal according to some embodiments;

FIG. 20 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user interface/user experience (UI/UX) according to someembodiments;

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with a main menu fly-out appearing on the topleft side according to some embodiments;

FIG. 22 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with a live television schedule fly-outappearing on the top left side according to some embodiments;

FIG. 23 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX according to some embodiments;

FIG. 24 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode accordingto some embodiments;

FIG. 25 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anarticle pop-up according to some embodiments;

FIG. 26 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX in a split-screen viewing mode according tosome embodiments;

FIG. 27 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with an unlocked coupon pop-up according tosome embodiments;

FIG. 28 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anaffiliate link pop-up according to some embodiments;

FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anupload pop-up according to some embodiments;

FIG. 30 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an upload interface according to some embodiments;

FIG. 31 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and the upload interface with the video uploaded according tosome embodiments;

FIG. 32 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode with theuploaded video according to some embodiments;

FIG. 33 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an introduction screen in the foreground according tosome embodiments;

FIG. 34 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and acoupon link pop-up according to some embodiments;

FIG. 35 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an inline product page according to some embodiments;

FIG. 36 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX according to some embodiments;

FIGS. 37-39 illustrates exemplary screenshots of a developer toolinterface according to some embodiments; and

FIG. 40 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing multipledimensions of commerce and streaming data to provide advanced userprofiling and realtime commerce choices according to some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A system and method for providing a user with a personalized,interactive user experience when accessing, selecting and consuming, forexample, viewing or listening to content such as movies, televisionprograms or music is described herein. In an exemplary embodiment, thepersonalized user experience is provided by an application program,being executed on a client device which allows a user to select among adatabase of pre-recorded content, for example, movies, televisionprograms, podcasts, or viewing live television programming. Theapplication allows the user to control the content being consumed aswell as provide for commercial interactions, for example, the purchasingor other downloading of contextual and/or personalized physical goods ordigital content related to the content being consumed.

A web layer (or other layer) is displayed over full screen streamingvideo which provides the contextual linking for a more in-depth userexperience and better analytics. A user interface navigation withunlockable content is overlaid on a full (e.g., maximized) or partscreen streaming video.

The term “unlockable” used herein means “able to be unlocked.” Forexample, if content or an object is locked initially, it is unlockablesuch that when a user performs a task (e.g., watches 10 minutes of avideo), the locked content becomes unlocked content, so the user is ableto select and access the content. In some embodiments, the term“content” used herein means “stream-able video content, physicalproducts, promotional rewards, or other items.”

The user interface navigation runs on top of the streaming video. Theuser is able to navigate and explore different content within a specificgenre in the foreground while a montage (or other video) is playing inthe background. In some embodiments, the user is able to obtain metadatarelated to the streaming video such as character biographies.

By providing the user with a personalized, interactive viewingexperience, the user may be more likely to engage in commercialinteractions within the application. In this manner, the user enjoys theviewing or listening experience, and the content providers are providedwith a more likely customer for their goods or services.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of the personalized interactiveuser experience system 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention. The system 100 includes a client device 102, forexample, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a tablet computer, apersonal digital assistant, a set top box (STB), a game console, amobile communication device, such as a mobile telephone, a smart phoneand/or another suitable wearable device. For example, wearabletechnology (e.g., Fitbit) is able to be coupled to the system totransfer data in real-time. Furthering the example, a user's exerciseinformation acquired using the wearable technology is transferred to thesystem, and based on the exercise information, the system providesadvertising content or other contextual content (e.g., after determiningthe user has run 300 miles, new sneakers are advertised or a coupon isprovided). The client device 102 may include an integrated memory forstoring an application program 103 as described herein and a displaydevice 104 for displaying the user interface, which may include thecontent being consumed. The display 104 may also be external to theclient device 102, for example, a second screen implementation. Inapplication, the client device 102 includes one or more processors forexecuting the application program 103 to provide the personalizedinteractive user experience.

The client 102 is connected to a content server 106 via an applicablelocal or wide area network 110, for example, the Internet. The client102 is also coupled to an Ad server 107 and an authentication server108. Content providers 112-1, 112-2 . . . 112-n, for example, moviestudios, television studios, music distributors, game developers,broadcasters or other applicable content providers provide content aswell as contextual advertising integrated within the content to thecontent server 106 for distribution and presentation on the client 102.In an alternate embodiment, the content providers 112-1, 112-2 . . .112-n and as well as third party providers may provide applicableadvertising to the Ad server 107 for later incorporation within thecontent maintained in the content server.

To ensure the best user viewing experience available, the contentproviders 112-1, 112-2 . . . 112-n store multiple versions of anapplicable piece of content to the content server 106. For example, amovie may be encoded in a plurality of bit rates to provide for thetransmission and display of the movie on a variety of different devicesand a variety of different bandwidths. For example, a user that is asubscriber to a particular service may be provided with movies or othercontent at a higher bandwidth (or bit rate) than a user that may not bea subscriber and is using the service on a free service; thereby beingprovided with movies or other content at a lower bandwidth (or bitrate).

In those situations when the user wants to establish an account forpurchasing or otherwise accessing premium content, the client 102 willconnect to the content server 106 and the user of the client 102 willgenerate a profile and account. The profile may include the users name,e-mail contact, age, viewing and genre preferences and payment methodfor subsequent/recurring purchases. A user name and password will alsobe established as part of the profile generated in order to subsequentlyidentify the user for future activities. This information may also beprovided to the authentication server 108 for subsequent activities ofthe user. When the user wants to access the service, the user will entertheir user name. The authentication server 108 may also be used toprocess payment of any sales to the user.

When the user wants to access the personalized content integrationservice, the user will activate the application program 103. Theapplication program will connect the client 102 to the content server106 or the authentication server 108, if applicable, to authenticate theuser and allow the user to peruse the content available for consumptionas discussed in greater detail below.

FIG. 2 is an expanded schematic view of the personal interactive userexperience system of the present invention, including server sidedemographic information 211 that may be provided by the user whenestablishing their account. The demographic information 211 may also beprovided via the users viewing, searching and purchasing habits. Forexample, based on the user's viewing, searching and purchasing habits,preference information (e.g., the genres and other types of informationthat a particular user prefers) is captured and stored in thedemographic information 211 of the content server. Information relatingto the social networking 204 activities of the user may also be capturedand included in the user's profile. Based on the user's entered andcaptured demographic data, advertising targeted to the specificinterests of the user may be presented during playback of content or atother times such as scrubbing the content. This may have the addedeffect of getting the user to be more engaged in the actual, andrelated, content the user is consuming as well as providing forcommercial transactions to third party providers. Viewing ratinginformation servers 202 are illustrated in FIG. 2 to illustrate howthird party information may be obtained.

FIG. 3A illustrates a schematic representation of the user interface 300according to an exemplary embodiment showing the presentation oftargeted advertising 306-1, 306-2, 306-3. As illustrated, the contentbeing consumed 302 is provided in the background of the user interface300. The display includes a timeline 305 and a play button 307 used tocontrol the traversing of the content. In application, at predeterminedtime intervals of a movie, for example, advertisements 306-1, 306-2,306-3 related to the interests of the user, based, for example, on theuser's profile information are placed as animated graphics in the smallJPEG images corresponding to the particular time period instead of thestandard JPEG image of the corresponding content being displayed 302.This targeted advertising may be presented when the content is beingdisplayed normally or when the user is scrubbing (e.g., fast forwardingor rewinding) the content. In this manner, the user may be provided withadvertising that is of direct interest to them. In some embodiments, theads 306-1, 306-2, 306-3 provided at the predetermined time points may becontextually related to the content being consumed. For example, if thecontent being displayed relates to France, the advertising may bedirected to purchasing travel tickets to Paris or French clothingarticles, for example, a beret or French influenced food.

In some embodiments, a player-in-player implementation is utilized. Forexample, a video player within a streaming video player is implemented.Furthering the example, a video advertisement is played within thestreaming video player.

As described herein, advertising is able to be displayed while a user isscrubbing content such as fast forwarding, rewinding or jumping todifferent locations in the content. FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplaryscreenshot of scrubbing content according to some embodiments. At thebottom of a video 300 that is being played, a timeline bar 352 is ableto be selected and manipulated such that the video 350 is affected(e.g., fast forwarded). While the video 350 is being fast forwarded,instead of displaying a blank screen, thumbnail images of advertisements354 (also referred to as advertisement content), instead of or inaddition to video frames 356 from the video, are displayed above thetimeline bar 352 as shown in FIG. 3B. For example, code is included inan application to display a thumbnail image from the video 350 on thescreen in a specific location if that thumbnail image is available inmemory, but if the thumbnail image of the video is not available, thenthe advertisement content (which may be pre-loaded in memory to ensureits availability) is displayed in the specific location until the videothumbnail image is available to replace the advertisement content. Bypre-loading the advertisement content, bandwidth is saved when needed,and the user experience is improved such that instead of staring at ablank screen, some content is displayed for the user. In someembodiments, the advertisement content 354 is displayed until videothumbnails 356 (also referred to as video frames or video content) areavailable (e.g., have been downloaded or loaded into memory). In someembodiments, the advertisement content 354 is displayed for a set periodof time (e.g., 1 second or 3 seconds). In some embodiments, theadvertisement content 354 is displayed only while the user is scrubbingthe video 350, and once the user releases the timeline bar 352 orselects play, the advertisement content 354 disappears or is replaced bythe video thumbnails 356 or the video 350. In some embodiments, onceeach video thumbnail 356 is loaded, the advertisement content 354 is notdisplayed until the video thumbnail 356 is no longer loaded (e.g., afterthe video thumbnail is cleared from the cache/memory). The advertisementcontent 354 is able to be any kind of content such as still images,animated images (e.g., gifs), videos, text, and/or audio. In someembodiments, the advertisement content 354 is presented in a sequentialmanner. For example, the first advertisement thumbnail is followed by asecond advertisement thumbnail and so on, and when viewed sequentially,the set of advertisement thumbnails forms a thought or presentationsimilar to flip books with a single static drawing on each page but whenflipped quickly show movement. In some embodiments, the advertisementcontent 354 is targeted towards a user via demographics and/or otherpreferences (e.g., gender, age, location, income, occupation, personalpreferences, viewing preferences, purchasing behavior, browsing history)and/or the advertisement content 354 is related to the video playing. Insome embodiments, a single advertisement is repeatedly shown in theadvertisement content 354 (e.g., first thumbnail through the lastthumbnail are all the same), and in some embodiments, multipleadvertisements are displayed in the advertisement content 354 (e.g.,first thumbnail is an advertisement by Company X, second thumbnail is anadvertisement by Company Y, and third thumbnail is an advertisement byCompany Z). In some embodiments, the advertisement content 354 isgenerated by a third party (e.g., the advertiser) or by a host company(e.g., Sony®).

In some embodiments, the scrubber branding utilizes a 2-tier pricingstructure for full subscription video on demand but includes anaudio/video on demand entry opportunity driven by both standardmarketing and using sharing and competition. For example, the on demandaudio/video is able to be shared via social networking and/or any othermechanism. Additionally, revenue sharing is able to be implemented suchthat a sharer (e.g., site/source that shares content) is able to receivea share of revenue for driving purchasing through a contextuallyrelevant affiliate link.

In a related implementation, FIG. 10 shows the user interface where anaction bubble 420 is presented to the user indicating that contextual(e.g., related) material is available. In this case, a musicalsoundtrack relating to primary content being viewed is available fordownload (unlocked). In this example, at a predetermined time during theplayback of the movie, the user is provided the opportunity to listen,download and/or purchase individual songs or an entire soundtrack(and/or other types of targeted merchandising relating to the streamingcontent) from the movie being consumed. The purchase or otherwiseaccessing of the soundtrack related to the movie being consumed is anexample of contextual advertising that is provided to the user toenhance the user experience while being engaged in the correspondingmovie. The targeted and contextual advertising and potential commercialtransactions are examples of the advantages provided by the applicationprogram. Any type of content is able to be made available for rent,purchase or other access, such as images, music, videos, items(clothing, jewelry, equipment) and/or games. In some embodiments, thecontextual material is available at a specific point in a video/movie(e.g., at the 10:00 mark of the video) or after the video has played fora certain amount of time (e.g., after the user watches 10 minutes of themovie—even if the user skips around, the cumulative time watched is ableto be computed).

In some embodiments, an implementation is utilized to ensure the useractually watches the content. The system is able to respond/interactwith the user to determine that the user is still watching or if theyhave left the screen, and if the content should be paused. For example,a video camera is able to detect the user or the user's eyes, and if theuser is not in front of the screen or if the user is looking away, thenthe time is not accumulated. In another example, if another window orapp is overlaid on the video, then the time accumulation is stopped. Bymonitoring or analyzing whether the user is watching the video preventsusers from turning on the video and then leaving or doing something elsesimply to unlock contextual content, which would be a waste ofbandwidth. In some embodiments, the monitoring and/or analysis isutilized to stop or pause the video to prevent a waste of bandwidth. Forexample, if the user is watching a video, and then receives a phonecall, the video may still be playing in the background or on anotherdevice, and by detecting the user is not watching the video, the videois paused or stopped to assist the user and also to prevent a double useof bandwidth—first, while the user is distracted and second, when theuser goes back to watch the part that was missed.

In some embodiments, commerce activities are able to be unlocked atcontextual points in media experiences. During video playback, users areable to unlock commerce activities that include, but are not limited to,music, clothing, retail coupons and other types of merchandising options(physical and digital). For example, a user plays the video and at aspecific time or after a specific amount of time (as described herein),an unlockable (meaning able to be unlocked) bubble or other item isdisplayed over the video to notify the user that the unlockable/bonuscontent is available. Examples of e-commerce include: music purchases(e.g., a pop-up is displayed during a contextual point of the video, andif the user clicks the pop-up, the user is brought to another userinterface or a user interface within the current user interface wherethey are able to stream the audio track with an opportunity to purchaseor stream in other services. Another pop-up is also displayed during theaudio stream to return the user back to where they left off in thevideo. A pop-up is also able to display coupon codes for retail outletsand other various promotional campaign initiatives. A pop-up is able todisplay unlockable movie snippets, exclusive trailers and other bonuscontent.

FIGS. 4-9 illustrate the interactive user interface provided by theapplication program according to some embodiments. As described herein,the interactive user interface is able to be implemented on any device(e.g., computer, gaming console, smart phone and other devices). Whenthe application program is executed, the user is taken to a main page400 where the user may navigate to a particular piece of content forwhich they wish to consume. As illustrated, the main page has a userinterface where content 402 (e.g., a video) is displayed in a backgroundlayer; the foreground layer may include bibliographic 404 and seriescollection (e.g., series) information 405 relating to a particular pieceof content. Although illustrated as being presented along the horizontalaxis of the interface, the bibliographic and corresponding seriescollection information may be presented along the vertical axis of theinterface or any other orientation. The main display also includes amenu button 406, a play button 407 and a collection view button 408.

When the menu button 406 is activated or depressed, a main menu screen410 is presented in the foreground layer of the display (FIG. 5). Eachsub-button of the main menu corresponds to an action that may be taken.When the collection view button 408 is activated or depressed theseveral movies that correspond to a movie or television show franchise412, 414 are presented in the foreground layer of the display (FIG. 6).

FIG. 7 illustrates the user interface presented on the display 104(FIG. 1) when the movie is selected from the collection view of FIG. 6.As shown, the background layer 402 may include the movie being played;the foreground layer may include additional information 412 relating tothe piece of content selected as well as a media player 414 configurableof playing the movie or other enhanced content, for example, behind thescenes footage related to the movie. The related information content 412is only principally visible for a predetermined amount of time beforeits representation is grayed out so as to not be as visible (FIG. 8).

FIG. 9 illustrates the display when video content is being consumed. Asshown, the movie content 402 is presented in the background layer. Themedia player controller, including forward, rewind, and pausefunctionality, is presented in the foreground layer. All user interfacenavigation runs on top of the content (which is being streamed). Whilebrowsing, the user may navigate and explore different content within aspecific genre in the foreground layer while a montage is playing in thebackground layer (FIGS. 8-9). As shown, at particular time periods ofthe movie, the user may obtain behind the scenes information 306-1related to the movie being played; behind the scenes information 306-2and soundtrack information 306-3 may also be accessed by the user.

When the user selects enhanced information (e.g., behind the scenesinformation 306-1) relating to the movie being played, the movie ispaused at the particular time point while the enhanced information ispresented to the user. The enhanced information may include otherunlockable information, for example, streaming audio, coupon codes andon-line merchandising store goods may be presented to the user. Once theuser is finished viewing the enhanced information, the movie resumesfrom where it was paused. Depending on the bandwidth available to theuser, the application program may request that the content be streamedat a greater or lesser bit rate to accommodate the currently availablebandwidth. This bit rate adjustment may also be used to provide forsecond device viewing of paused content. In this situation, the user mayhave started viewing content, for example, on a game console but resumedplayback on a tablet or smart phone. In such a situation, the contentserver will provide the current playback device with the paused contentat a bit rate appropriate for the current playback device (e.g.,tablet).

As mentioned above, advertising that is targeted to the particular useris integrated into and provided to the client as part of the content.The metadata corresponding to the targeted advertising is generatedthrough video analytics and commerce analytics engaged in by the userwhen consuming video content and enhanced content. Site and experienceanalytics are also provided based on how users navigate through theexperience. For example, video analytics relate to the types of videosusers are watching most often, the videos the user may share withfriends via social network or other types of recommendations, number ofvideos played, and average bitrate streaming thresholds. Commerceanalytics include the click-thru and sell-thru rate of products, howwell different products are performing and differences between productsbased on user preference. User analytics may also be captured, includingthe percentage of users making e-commerce purchases, drivers for thehighest retention rates and how such information can best be expandedacross a broader user group. Demographic data may also be captured tohelp better segment offerings for higher sell through and enable newcontent creation.

By capturing the aforementioned user information, content providers mayview, for example, the unlockable content as such information relates tothe video, then select specific content targeted towards the end-userand place the same at different timeframes or timecodes with the videoor type of video that a particular user views most often, using anapplication linked to a service. The visual interface provides real-timemedia manipulation in streaming services.

A content owner (e.g., the producer of a video) is able to configure ata specific time or after a specific amount of time in a video, anunlockable bubble (or other graphic) to be displayed over the video tonotify the user that bonus content is available. After a time period(e.g., 3-5 seconds), the unlocked node is partially hidden or minimizedso as not to obscure the video, but the user is able to return to theunlockable node at any point.

FIG. 11 illustrates a user interface that is presented on the displaywhen Live TV is selected. The program application may contact a contentserver whereby the user may select to view live broadcasts instead ofstored (e.g., movie) content. In this situation, the user is presentedwith the illustrated user interface. As shown, the interface includeschannel/content provider information. Schedule information 1103,including day 1102 and time 1104 is presented to the user. The user mayselect the programming corresponding to the current time. For example,at 3:00 AM, the user may watch the BBC World News live.

FIGS. 12-14 illustrate exemplary screenshots of a user interfaceoverlaid on a streaming video according to some embodiments. In someembodiments, the user interface which is overlaid on the streaming videois semi-transparent, so that the video is able to be watched through theuser interface, as shown in FIG. 12. The user interface is able toinclude descriptions of videos (e.g., episodes of a series) as well asimages or thumbnails which show a screenshot from or related to thevideo. The user interface is scrollable up and down (or side to side),and when the user scrolls up and down, the descriptionappears/disappears (e.g., fades in/fades out or disappears from the topor bottom of the screen), and the images come in from the side of thescreen to be positioned next to the description. In some embodiments,parallax scrolling is implemented on the user interface, whereby theimages appear from a small point in the screen and gradually get larger(to a certain point) or smaller as the user scrolls up or down.Additionally, smaller unlockable content pieces are displayed next tothe image of the video. For example, the image of the video is similarto a planet, and the unlockable content is similar to moons orbiting theplanet (FIG. 13). As described herein, the unlockable content is locked(meaning inaccessible) until the user performs an action such aswatching 10 minutes of a video. In some embodiments, the unlockablecontent is shown but locked until the user performs the appropriateaction, and in some embodiments, the unlockable content is not shown atall until the user performs the appropriate action, and then theunlockable content appears next to the video/episode image (or bubble)(FIG. 14). The unlockable content is able to be any content such asmini-sodes, soundtracks, artwork, video, games and never-before-seencontent made available to the user as bonus content. For example,unlockable content includes a 4-minute description of Character X, sothat a user is able to jump into the middle of a video series withouthaving to watch the 10 previous episodes. The unlockable content maybecome available when Character X first appears in the current episodeor at any other designated time. In some implementations, the samescreen/view is displayed for disparate devices. For example, if a userwatches a video with a user interface overlay on a tablet, and thenwatches the video on a smart television, and then watches the videousing a game console, and then watches the video on a smart phone, theview is the same (aside from sizing differences such as images/iconsbeing smaller on a 5 inch phone screen versus a 55 inch televisionscreen), whereby unlockable content is able to be accessed on all deviceonce unlocked on the user's initial view. Additionally, the videostreaming with the user interface described herein is able to beutilized on a DVR.

When a user selects a video to watch, the majority of the user interfacedisappears, with the timeline bar positioned at the bottom (orelsewhere), and a minimized user interface placed at a corner of thescreen (or elsewhere). In some embodiments, the minimized user interface(or a portion of the user interface such as the episode description andany unlockable content) hides (e.g., completely disappears) and thenreappears when the user moves the cursor to a designated area (e.g., thebottom right corner). In some embodiments, the minimized user interfacebecomes semi-transparent and is positioned in the corner, so that it isnot a distraction, yet is available for the user to access. The user isable to interact with the minimized user interface to make it appear andhide it. In some embodiments, as described herein, when a specific eventoccurs (e.g., a song is detected or a song is known to play at xx:xxtime, a pop-up is displayed). For example, a pop-up is displayed toenable the user to access a high resolution, full version of a songwhere only a clip is played in a video. When the user selects thepop-up, the video is paused, and the user accesses the song, the userhas the ability to stream the song in its entirety and also access linksto purchase the song if they so choose. The user is then able to easilyreturn to the video by selecting “return” or a similar implementation.

In some embodiments, when content is loading such as a new page or a newvideo instead of displaying a basic cursor or an hourglass, the cursoris modified based on the content loading. For example, a Sony® logo isdisplayed in place of the standard cursor when visiting Sony®-specificcontent. The specific logo is able to be retrieved from a database basedon a content or site determination and is able to be targeted towardsthe end-user based on the content provider's preference, e.g.,displaying a cartoon loader specific for an animated site.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating the control of videoplayback according to some embodiments. Navigation of streaming content104 may be controlled by using NFC or Bluetooth® control mechanisms. Asillustrated, a plush toy (or stuffed animal) 1504 (or other object suchas a doll, action figure/figurine or any other toy/object) has NFC chips1505, 1506 sewn in both paws. The NFC chips communicate with the clientdevice 102 via a controller shield 1501. The user interface will presenta binary choice (e.g. 1, 2) to the user. The user decides whichdirection (e.g. forward, rewind) the video will take by touching the pawwith the embedded NFC chip (or coming within a predetermined range suchas 3 inches) to the controller shield 1501 that is connected to theclient device 102 (e.g., plugged into a USB port of the client device102). The controller shield 1501 then sends a keystroke of “1” or “2” tothe user interface whereby the user interface then displays the video inthe direction selected by the user. During video playback, the user isable to make decisions with the NFC enabled paws to interact with thevideo such as to unlock video content.

For example, a child uses a plush toy 1504 to move a selection cursor tomake a selection (e.g., select an icon) which takes the user to anothermenu, plays a video, affects the video (e.g., pause, stop, fast forward,rewind, record), starts a game/activity, participate in thegame/activity and/or any other action. The plush toy 1504 is also ableto be used to interact with the system to answer questions. For example,a video plays and is programmed with a question that is presented to thechild to answer. The child selects the answer using the plush toy 1504(e.g., moving the left paw to select answer 1 or right paw to selectanswer 2 to the controller shield 1501). In some embodiments, the childis rewarded for answering the question correctly. In some embodiments,the child is able to control a story based on selections (e.g., if thechild selects using the left paw, the character in the video will godown a left path and storyline Y is followed, and if the child selectsusing the right paw, the character in the video will go down the rightpath and storyline Z is followed).

In some embodiments, instead of or in addition to NFC chips, a wirelesstechnology (e.g., Bluetooth®) is utilized to enable the object (e.g.,plush toy) to communicate with a client device 102. In some embodiments,the object is able to talk and provide suggestions. For example, a plushtoy 1504 includes a processor, memory, microphone, speakers and/or anyother computing components, which are able to be programmed and used tocommunicate with a user. Furthering the example, a plush toy 1504 isprogrammed to provide suggestions to the user. For example, after a userwatches a video about colors, the plush toy 1504 speaks and recommendsto play a video about shapes. In some embodiments, the plush toy 1504communicates with the client device 102 to receive progress information.For example, if a user watches a video about numbers that includesquestions or plays a game about numbers, and the user gets many of thequestions wrong, the plush toy is able to recognize that (e.g., bycomparing the number of questions wrong initially or number of guessesper question or any other data with a threshold, and if the data isabove a threshold, then the user did not do very well), and recommendredoing the video for more practice or recommending a similar video thatis also about numbers. Additionally, the plush toy is able to encouragethe child to continue the question/answer process (e.g., by providingsound clips of encouragement), so as to encourage growth andpoints/rewards bonus redemption. Similarly, if the data is below thethreshold (e.g., it is determined the child answered all of thequestions correctly), the plush toy is able to provide the child withpraise and suggest a video/game in a different subject or harderproblems in the same subject. In some embodiments, the plush toy is ableto detect/sense surrounding information (e.g., recognize videos or musicbeing played or voices/speech). In some embodiments, the plush toy is arelatively “dumb” terminal with capabilities to send and receiveinformation as well as speak, but the analysis described herein (e.g.,analyzing/tracking user performance/actions) is performed on anotherdevice such as the client device 102. For example, the client device 102determines that user watched the same video 10 times in a row (where 10is a threshold for suggesting a new video), so the client device 102sends a signal to the plush toy to say, “how about we watch this new,different video,” and a corresponding icon is displayed for the user toselect.

In some embodiments, the client device 102 is able to detect/identifythe plush toy character 1504 based on a specific signal sent by theplush toy 1504 (or any other detection method). For example, if twochildren each have a plush toy 1504, the client device 102 is able todetect Child A's plush toy character versus Child B's plush toycharacter, and different content is presented based on detecting thedifferent plush toys and/or characters. For example, a welcome screensays, “Welcome, Child A” when Child A's plush toy is detected.Additionally, the client device 102 is able to store progress or visitedcontent, such that if Child A has already completed a first level of agame related to a video, then by detecting Child A's plush toy, theclient device 102 would go to a second level of the game; however, ChildB has not completed the first level, so when Child B's plush toycharacter is detected, Child B is shown the first level of the game.Similarly, a location in a video could be saved for each child. Forexample, Child A left off at 4:55 in Video X, and Child B has onlywatched Video X to 1:20, so when Video X is selected, the video willbegin at the respective positions based on detection of the specificplush toy. Also, different objects/plush toys may have differentidentifiers, such that when Plush Toy J is detected, a video with PlushToy J is displayed, but if Plush Toy K is detected, then a video withPlush Toy K is displayed. In another example, when Plush toy J isdetected, the user interface is a customized user interface focused onPlush Toy J (e.g., graphics, music, videos, options are focused on orrelated to Plush Toy J).

FIG. 16 illustrates a flowchart of a method of interacting with astreaming content and an overlaid user interface according to someembodiments. In the step 1600, a user accesses streaming content whichincludes a user interface. For example, the user accesses the contentthrough a browser or an app by selecting a link or icon. From thecontent provider perspective, the content is provided to the user usingthe browser/app. The content and/or user interface is able to bemodified to provide the desired effects, interactions and/or contextualcontent by the content provider. In the step 1602, the user navigatesthe user interface by scrolling up and down (or left and right), andselecting content such as an episode. In the step 1604, if the user fastforwards or rewinds the content, advertisement content is displayed. Inthe step 1606, while the user is watching the streaming content, theuser interface is substantially minimized but easily accessible to theuser. In the step 1608, at specific times or after specific amounts oftime, contextual content is unlocked for the user to access. Once thecontextual content is unlocked, the user is able to interact with thecontextual content, in the step 1610. The contextual content is able tobe related to the user, to the content being displayed or a combinationthereof. In some embodiments, fewer or additional steps are implemented,and/or the order of the steps is modified. For example, in someembodiments, interacting with the content includes using an NFC-enabledor wireless (e.g., Bluetooth®) device such as a plush toy.

FIG. 17 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computing deviceconfigured to implement the personalized integrated video userexperience according to some embodiments. The computing device 1700 isable to be used to acquire, store, compute, process, communicate and/ordisplay information such as images, videos and audio. In general, ahardware structure suitable for implementing the computing device 1700includes a network interface 1702, a memory 1704, a processor 1706, I/Odevice(s) 1708, a bus 1710 and a storage device 1712. The choice ofprocessor is not critical as long as a suitable processor withsufficient speed is chosen. The memory 1704 is able to be anyconventional computer memory known in the art. The storage device 1712is able to include a hard drive, CDROM, CDRW, DVD, DVDRW, HighDefinition disc/drive, ultra-HD drive, flash memory card or any otherstorage device. The computing device 1700 is able to include one or morenetwork interfaces 1702. An example of a network interface includes anetwork card connected to an Ethernet or other type of LAN. The I/Odevice(s) 1708 are able to include one or more of the following:keyboard, mouse, monitor, screen, printer, modem, touchscreen, buttoninterface and other devices. Personalized integrated video userexperience application(s) 1730 used to implement the personalizedintegrated video user experience are likely to be stored in the storagedevice 1712 and memory 1704 and processed as applications are typicallyprocessed. More or fewer components shown in FIG. 17 are able to beincluded in the computing device 1700. In some embodiments, personalizedintegrated video user experience hardware 1720 is included. Although thecomputing device 1700 in FIG. 17 includes applications 1730 and hardware1720 for the personalized integrated video user experience, thepersonalized integrated video user experience is able to be implementedon a computing device in hardware, firmware, software or any combinationthereof. For example, in some embodiments, the personalized integratedvideo user experience applications 1730 are programmed in a memory andexecuted using a processor. In another example, in some embodiments, thepersonalized integrated video user experience hardware 1720 isprogrammed hardware logic including gates specifically designed toimplement the personalized integrated video user experience method.

In some embodiments, the personalized integrated video user experienceapplication(s) 1730 include several applications and/or modules. In someembodiments, modules include one or more sub-modules as well. In someembodiments, fewer or additional modules are able to be included.

Examples of suitable computing devices include a personal computer, alaptop computer, a computer workstation, a server, a mainframe computer,a handheld computer, a personal digital assistant, a cellular/mobiletelephone, a smart appliance, a game console, a digital camera, adigital camcorder, a camera phone, a smart phone, a portable musicplayer, a tablet computer, a mobile device, a video player, a video discwriter/player (e.g., DVD writer/player, high definition discwriter/player, ultra high definition disc writer/player), a television,a home entertainment system, smart jewelry (e.g., smart watch), a toy(e.g., stuffed animal, a plush toy) or any other suitable computingdevice.

Blu-ray™ (high definition video disc device) pairing with a video portalis described herein. The pairing capabilities are able to be stored onthe Blu-ray™ disc. For example, an application is stored on the Blu-ray™disc which enables pairing. Additionally, analytics capabilities arestored on the Blu-ray™ disc which are able to determine which user tookwhich action (e.g., pressed play, stop, skipped chapters, did not watcha video). The analytics are able to be used to suggest content and takeother actions automatically to enhance a user experience. By pairing theBlu-ray™ with a video portal, a user is able to resume a video onlinewhere the user left off at on the disc or vice versa. In someembodiments, the pairing is implemented using a unique device code forthe Blu-ray™ player. For example, the unique device code for a Blu-ray™player is sent to, entered into or retrieved by a video portal, so thatany Blu-ray™ movie played using the Blu-ray™ player is accessible usingthe video portal.

Additionally, from the Blu-ray™ disc or video portal, a user is able totake social networking actions such as “liking” on Facebook®, sendingtweets and sharing content. For example, a user is able to share a“liked” 1-minute movie or television clip on a social media newsfeedwith their connections.

The Blu-ray™ disc also provides additional interactivity. For example,games are placed interstitially within movies. Furthering the example, auser watches a movie, and at a designated point, the movie changes to avideo game, which the user participates in, and then after the gamingsequence, the movie resumes. In some embodiments, the actions/outcome ofthe game affect the path of the movie.

In one example, a movie about car racing includes one or more video gamesequences also related to racing. After 30 minutes of movie time wherethe user simply watches the movie, a racing sequence begins as part ofthe movie. However, instead of watching the racing sequence, the userplays a video game racing sequence (e.g., using a PlayStation 4®). Thegame console is capable to switch between movie playing and gameplaying. The user uses the game controller as he would with any othergame to participate in the video game racing sequence. In someembodiments, after the user plays the video game sequence, the movieresumes independent of the outcome of the video game sequence. In someembodiments, after the user plays the video game sequence, the movie isaffected by the results of the video game sequence. For example, ifduring the video game racing sequence, the user wins the race, StorylineX of the movie is played; however, if the user loses the race, thenStoryline Y of the movie is played. This provides a highly interactiveexperience for the user.

After a user places a Blu-ray™ disc with pairing capabilities in aBlu-ray™ player, the device is paired with a video portal (e.g., a webpage portal). The user generates or has a user account within the videoportal, so the Blu-ray™ player is paired with the user's account of theportal. In some embodiments, once the Blu-ray™ player is paired with theaccount, it is persistently paired with the video portal. The Blu-ray™player and/or portal are able to determine what the disc is (e.g., byreading specific data such as a title parameter). In some embodiments,an application (or other programming) on the Blu-ray™ disc or player isable to launch the video portal on a connected device (e.g., television,tablet, phone). The video portal is able to be accessed using anotherimplementation (e.g., an app on a portable device or through a webbrowser). In some embodiments, the disc is used to access the videoportal, if the Blu-ray™ player does not include an app or browser.

Assuming the Blu-ray™ player has access to the Internet, dynamicadvertisements are able to be utilized with the Blu-ray™ disc. Forexample, static advertisements are stored on the Blu-ray™ disc for whenthe Blu-ray™ player is not connected to the Internet, but there is alsoprogramming on the Blu-ray™ disc that when an Internet connection isdetected, the Blu-ray™ disc downloads and displays dynamicadvertisements at designated locations. Furthering the example, aBlu-ray™ disc has trailers for Movies X, Y and Z, which were released inJanuary of 2015; however, these trailers lose their value as timepasses. Using dynamic advertising, trailers for Movies A, B and C, whichwere just released based on the current date, are accessed (e.g.,downloaded from a database of movie trailers) and displayed. Thetrailers (or other advertising) can continuously be updated, so thatfresh trailers are displayed to the user. Furthermore, additional userinformation (e.g., analytics on the disc or through the video portal) isable to be accessed and utilized to further tailor the dynamicexperience. For example, if a database is maintained or information isable to be crawled for (e.g., social networking information), the systemmay know that the current user has already seen Movie A, so the value ofthe trailer for Movie A is minimal, and the trailer for Movie D isdisplayed instead.

In some embodiments, different types of Blu-ray™ discs are able to besold depending on the advertising features. For example, a Blu-ray™ discwith no advertisements is priced higher than a Blu-ray™ disc withadvertisements.

In some embodiments, the video portal and social networking sites areable to be linked together. By linking the accounts, a user is able toefficiently perform social networking tasks (e.g., liking, sharing). Forexample, using a remote control for a Blu-ray™ player, a user is able toshare content through Facebook (e.g., pressing the green button on aremote control causes a 1 minute clip from the movie being watched to beposted on a Facebook newsfeed, such as 15 seconds prior to pressing thebutton and 45 seconds after). When a contact selects the link/video thatwas shared, the video opens in a web page/browser/application player.The contact is able to watch the clip, and then they are prompted torent/buy the full movie.

As described herein, a pop-up is overlaid on a video to displayunlockable content to a user. If the user selects (e.g., clicks) theunlockable content, the current video is paused, and the user is broughtto a separate screen to stream audio, view coupon codes at an onlinee-commerce merchandising store, or view exclusive content. Uponreturning to their video for playback, the video is able to be resumedwithout any additional video buffering. In some embodiments, a thresholdis increased so that no video buffering is needed; the bit rate streamduring playback is adaptive so that the video continues where the userleft off at the same bit rate. In some embodiments, the video isbuffered while the user accesses the unlockable content. In someembodiments, the video includes the movie from the Blu-ray™ disc. Forexample, the contextual content, the advertising during scrubbing, theoverlaid user interface and the other information described herein areable to be applied to a movie from a Blu-ray™ disc being watched usingthe video portal.

FIG. 18 illustrates a diagram of a network of devices according to someembodiments. The network of devices 1800 includes a computing device1802 (e.g., a personal computer, a tablet compute, a laptop), atelevision 1804, a smart phone 1806 and a Blu-ray™ player 1808 whichcommunicate through one or more networks 1810. In some embodiments, oneor more of the devices are able to communicate directly (e.g., theBlu-ray™ player 1808 connected to the television 1804). In someembodiments, fewer or additional devices are included. The Blu-ray™player 1808 is configured to receive a Blu-ray™ disc 1812 as describedherein.

The network 1810 is able to be any network such as a home/office LAN,the Internet, a cellular network, a wired network, a wireless network,or any combination thereof.

In an exemplary implementation, a user places a Blu-ray™ disc in theBlu-ray™ player 1808. The Blu-ray™ disc includes an application forpairing the Blu-ray™ player with a video portal. The video portal isaccessible using any capable device such as a computing device 1802, asmart television 1804 or a smart phone 1806.

In some embodiments, once the Blu-ray™ player begins the application onthe Blu-ray™ disc, a prompt to pair the Blu-ray™ player 1808 isdisplayed on the television 1804 and a device code is provided to theuser. The user then uses a device capable of accessing the video portalto enter the device code which pairs the Blu-ray™ player 1808 and thevideo portal. After the Blu-ray™ player 1808 and the video portal arepaired, the video portal is able to determine/receive/retrieve theBlu-ray™ disc information (e.g., title). As described herein, the useris then able to watch the movie on the Blu-ray™ disc using the Blu-ray™player 1808 and television 1804 or any other device such as thecomputing device 1802 or the smart phone 1806 using the video portal.Furthermore, the Blu-ray™ player and/or video portal are able to trackor determine the current position of the movie, so that when the userswitches between devices, the movie resumes at the position the userleft off at. In some embodiments, the video portal continuously monitors(or checks every n seconds such as 5) the position of the movie, andbuffers content, so that when the user switches from the Blu-ray™player, the movie plays immediately. In some embodiments, the videoportal begins buffering the content when the user stops watching themovie on the Blu-ray™ player, but not before then. In some embodiments,the Blu-ray™ player and the video portal communicate the currentposition of the movie (e.g., user is currently watching 1:45:00 of themovie), so that when the user switches devices, the movie resumes at thecurrent position. In some embodiments, an online database stores thecurrent position, so that regardless of which device is used to accessthe movie, the movie resumes where the user left off. Additionally, ifthe user links the video portal with a social networking system, theuser is able to share content (e.g., a clip from a movie) and performother social networking actions using the Blu-ray™ player 1808 (e.g.,using the remote control) or any of the other devices.

FIG. 19 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing a Blu-ray™player and a video portal according to some embodiments. In the step1900, a Blu-ray™ player and a video portal are paired. As describedherein, the pairing is able to occur using an interface through theBlu-ray™ player and/or another device such as a smart phone. In the step1902, the movie on the Blu-ray™ disc is played. The movie is able to beplayed using the Blu-ray™ device and/or other devices, including theability to switch from one device to another where the movie resumesplay regardless of the device the movie is playing on. In the step 1904,interactivity features are implemented using the Blu-ray™ disc and/orthe video portal. The interactivity features include, but are notlimited to, social networking interactivity (e.g., sharing clips fromthe movie on a social network), dynamic advertising before, during orafter the movie plays, providing contextual content, and analysis ofuser actions. The analysis of the user actions is able to be used forfurther actions such as recommending different movies, content orproducts and providing offers. In some embodiments, the order of thesteps is modified. In some embodiments, fewer or additional steps areimplemented.

FIG. 20 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user interface/user experience (UI/UX) according to someembodiments. The integrated multi-platform UI/UX includes a main video2000 (played using a video player), a feed 2002 of recent clips/episodesrelated to the main video, a shopping area 2004 of items related orunrelated to the main video, tending content 2006 related to the mainvideo, text 2008 (e.g., an article related to the main video), an uploadimplementation 2010 for uploading user content, an unlocked contentcomponent 2012, a shopping cart 2014 component and a main menu component2016. Fewer or additional components/implementations/aspects are able tobe included with the integrated multi-platform UI/UX.

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with a main menu fly-out appearing on the topleft side according to some embodiments. The main menu fly-out 2100provides access to additional content/features such as home, tickets,photos, video clips, episodes, giveaways, shopping, unlocked content,uploads, help, and/or any other content/features. By selecting a menuitem on the menu fly-out 2100, a user is able to quickly navigate toanother section or page.

FIG. 22 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with a live television schedule fly-outappearing on the top left side according to some embodiments. The livetelevision schedule fly-out 2200 provides information about upcomingepisodes/shows.

FIG. 23 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX according to some embodiments. By selecting anexpand icon 2300, a user is able to expand the video to a full screen ornear-full screen setting. Once the user selects the expand the video,the video seamlessly transitions to full-screen mode. Full-screen modeincludes a modified UI/UX as shown in FIG. 24.

FIG. 24 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode accordingto some embodiments. While in full screen mode 2400, a playlist 2402 ispositioned on the side. The user is able to select content from theplaylist 2402 (e.g., a next video to watch). A timeline bar 2404 ispositioned at the bottom of the screen (or elsewhere) to enable users toexit out of full screen mode, go to a previous or next clip, “like” thevideo and/or perform other social networking actions, play/pause thevideo, jump to a different position in a video, adjust the volume,and/or any other actions.

FIG. 25 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anarticle pop-up according to some embodiments. An article pop-up 2500pops up during a related video. For example, a boy appears on atelevision show after an article or video about the boy goes “viral.”While watching the video of the boy on the television show, the articleor video that went “viral,” appears for the user to select, if they wantto read/view more.

FIG. 26 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX in a split-screen viewing mode according tosome embodiments. The video 2000 is displayed on one part (approximatelyhalf) of the screen, and the article 2600 related to the video 2000 isdisplayed on a second part (approximately half) of the screen. The twoparts are able to be separately manipulated (e.g., a user is able toscroll the text of the article 2600 while the video plays, and itsposition on the screen does not change). In some embodiments, othercomponents/features are displayed in the part of the screen with thevideo 2000 such as related videos/stories.

FIG. 27 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with an unlocked coupon pop-up according tosome embodiments. By reading through to the bottom of the article (or byperforming another action), a user unlocks a coupon or other unlockablecontent. The UI shows the unlocked coupon in a coupon pop-up 2700. TheUI also opens the unlocked menu 2702 on the right which displays theunlocked content. In some embodiments, the unlocked menu 2702 has a“new” section which displays newly unlocked or most recently unlockedcontent. The unlocked menu 2702 is accessible using the unlocked contentcomponent 2012 as well. The user is able to return to the split-screenby closing the coupon pop-up 2700 and/or the unlocked menu 2702.

FIG. 28 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anaffiliate link pop-up according to some embodiments. When an onscreenevent (e.g., host presenting tickets to the guest) occurs, a UI event istriggered such as displaying an affiliate link pop-up 2800. Theaffiliate link pop-up 2800 enables a user to buy the same ticket withouthaving to leave the UI.

FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and anupload pop-up according to some embodiments. An upload pop-up 2900prompts a user to upload a video to a host sever (e.g., television showserver or 3^(rd) party server for use with the television show). Forexample, a show is discussing children or pets showing off talents, andthe user is prompted to upload a video of their children or pets showingoff their talents. In some embodiments, the uploads are part of acontest/competition.

FIG. 30 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an upload interface according to some embodiments. Theupload interface 3000 enables a user to upload content (e.g., video,image, audio, text). The upload interface 3000 includes any userinterface features such as text boxes for a video title and hash tags, alocation to drag and drop the content or a tool to select the content toupload, and command buttons to make a submission. For example, a user isable to tag a video with multiple hashtags for social networkingpurposes. After filling out the forms/interface, the content is uploadedto the host server.

FIG. 31 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and the upload interface with the video uploaded according tosome embodiments. The user sees the uploaded video 3100 on the screen.In addition to seeing the uploaded video 3100 after it is successfullyuploaded, the user is able to share the video using sharing features3102 or watch the video using the watch implementation 3104.

FIG. 32 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode with theuploaded video according to some embodiments. After the user selects toview their video, the full view video 3200 is played in the full screenview. The uploaded video also appears in the video option side bar 3202on the side of the UI.

FIG. 33 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an introduction screen in the foreground according tosome embodiments. After the user finishes watching the uploaded video,the system transitions to a new segment of video content. Theintroduction screen 3300 is displayed in the foreground. On theintroduction screen, the user is presented with options 3302 to sharethe content through social media, an advertisement 3304 may bepresented, trend tagging 3306 is available for selection, a skip button3308 is provided, and a description 3310 of the upcoming video isprovided.

FIG. 34 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode and acoupon link pop-up according to some embodiments. During the video, theguest is shown in an item for purchase (e.g., underwear), and a couponpop-up 3400 is displayed for the user to purchase the same or a similaritem.

FIG. 35 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX with the video in full screen mode in thebackground and an inline product page according to some embodiments.After the user selects the coupon pop-up, the user is given the abilityto buy the product in-line (e.g., without having to leave the videoviewing experience) using the in-line product page 3500. In someembodiments, the in-line product page 3500 includes options such ascolor, size, style of the product for the user to select and a purchaseor add to cart button to purchase the product. In some embodiments, userinformation is known (acquired by crawling social networkinginformation, previous purchases and/or other information, input by auser or any other manner), so that one or more of the options arepre-selected. For example, it is determined that the user previouslypurchased a size 2 skirt, so when a product is selected, the size isalready selected for the user for any future purchases.

FIG. 36 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing an integratedmulti-platform user UI/UX according to some embodiments. In the step3600, the integrated multi-platform UI is provided. For example, acontent provider makes the UI available online, and a user accesses theUI using a mobile device or personal computer. The UI includes a videoand contextual content, as well as other content. In the step 3602, theUI is able to be toggled among a standard view (e.g., as shown in FIG.20), a full screen view (e.g., as shown in FIG. 24) and a split-screenview (e.g., as shown in FIG. 26). The changing of views is able to beperformed in any manner such as selecting specific links, buttons,and/or content. Additional views or other windows or content are able tobe accessed as well. In the step 3604, the user is able to interact withthe UI including the video, the contextual content and/or additionalcontent. In some embodiments, fewer or additional steps are implemented.In some embodiments, the order of the steps is modified.

FIGS. 37-39 illustrates exemplary screenshots of a developer toolinterface according to some embodiments.

An interface 3700 of a developer tool shows a video 3702 (e.g., episode)and associated content 3704 (e.g., another video such as a trailer, agame, a coupon, and/or any other associated content). The associatedcontent 3704 is able to be associated with the episode, season orseries. The associated content 3704 is in the system (e.g., stored on aserver) for use with the video or other videos. The interface 3700 alsoshows which events occur and when, in both a graphical form 3706 (e.g.,as an icon on a timeline bar) and a list 3708. For example, the listshows which associated content will play at what time in the video. Theinterface 3700 allows a user to drag an icon of an event to a specifictime (e.g., play trailer at 1:30 of the video).

The interface 3700 includes an entry window 3800 to input details aboutan event such as the title, additional text, an image to be displayed,an alert type (e.g., unlock/lock, reveal/hide, or customized types),and/or any other details.

The interface 3700 includes a generate window 3900 to generateassociated content to be played/displayed during playback of the video3702. The create window 3900 enables a user to input information such astitle, select an image, content type (e.g., audio, video, game, images),affiliate information and/or any other information to generate theassociated content.

Multiple dimensions of commerce and streaming data are able to beutilized to provide advanced user profiling and realtime commercechoices. A number (e.g., four) of different analytics are combined toprovide real-time commerce options targeted towards the user. Some ofthe types of analytics include:

1) site and experience analytics: how users navigate through theexperience (distinct to each platform), what areas they focus on and howthose areas are being used and monetized;

2) video analytics: the types of videos users are watching most often,the videos they share with friends, the number of videos played;

3) commerce analytics: the click-through and sell-through rate ofproducts, how well different products are performing, differencesbetween products based on user performance; and

4) user analytics: percentage of users making e-commerce purchases,drivers for highest retention rates and how that is able to be bestexpanded across a broader user group, demographic data to help bettersegment offerings for higher sell-through, difference in user data byvideo that will position new content generation.

Site and experience analytics is performed by monitoring user selectionssuch as selections of video content, gaming content, or other content.Video analytics is implemented by noting types of videos watched (e.g.,by categorizing each video, and when a user selects a video,incrementing that category by one). Commerce analytics is performed bymonitoring clicks (e.g., by embedding code in a link to track the click)and monitoring sales information. User analytics is implemented bytracking users including their personal information such as demographicsand the users' selections, and using additional information (e.g.,generic information such as users 18-29 prefer hip-hop over rock music)to perform a full analysis. In some embodiments, when a user is loggedin, his information including clicks, content viewed/purchased, andother actions are tracked using his login information.

FIG. 40 illustrates a flowchart of a method of utilizing multipledimensions of commerce and streaming data to provide advanced userprofiling and realtime commerce choices according to some embodiments.In the step 4000, analytics (or analysis) are performed. For example,site and experience analytics, video analytics, commerce analytics,and/or user analytics are performed. In the step 4002, the analytics areutilized to provide a commerce choice. For example, based on theanalytics, contextual content using the analytics is provided while theuser is watching a video. Furthering the example, if a user never clickson coupons provided on a user interface or video portal, the analyticswill show this, and further contextual content will not include coupons.The analytics are able to be used to determine the type of contextualcontent, the subject matter of the contextual content, how thecontextual content is provided, where the contextual content isprovided, and/or any other aspects of using the analytics. In someembodiments, fewer or additional steps are implemented. In someembodiments, the order of the steps is modified.

In some embodiments, utilizing multiple dimensions of commerce andstreaming data to provide advanced user profiling and realtime commercechoices is implemented using one or more devices. For example, theanalytics are performed and a commerce choice is provided using a singledevice. In another example, a first device or a first set of devices areused to perform the analytics, and a second device or a second set ofdevices are used to provide the commerce choice.

To utilize the personalized integrated video user experience, a useraccesses and interacts with the content using a device such as a smartphone, game console and television, tablet, personal computer, toyand/or any other appropriate device. The user is able to navigate andwatch streaming content while also receiving contextual content.Additionally, the user is able to pair a Blu-ray™ player and a videoportal to be able to access the movie (and/or other content) on theBlu-ray™ disc from any device using the video portal. A user utilizes anintegrated multi-platform UI/UX by interacting with the UI includingaccessing content, receiving contextual content and uploading the user'sown content, along with other features. Without any additional effort onthe user's part, the user's actions/habits are analyzed and used toprovide advanced user profiling and realtime commerce choices.

In operation, the personalized integrated video user experience providesfor a smooth user experience for viewing video content. Contextualcontent is available and unlocked as the user watches the content. Thecontextual content is integrated within the system, so that a user isable to browse or acquire related content without having to leave thesystem. Furthermore, while fast forwarding or rewinding content, theuser is presented with an advertisement instead of a blank screen. Forchildren, wireless mechanisms are able to be used to interact withcontent. By pairing a Blu-ray™ player and a video portal, a user is ableto access content from any device, including resuming a movie from apoint left off at on a previous device. The integrated multi-platformUI/UX enables a user to enjoy an online experience includingwatching/viewing content, receiving offers and participating with thecontent. Additionally, analytics are able to be used to provide advanceduser profiling and realtime commerce choices.

Some Embodiments of Utilizing Multiple Dimensions of Commerce andStreaming Data to Provide Advanced User Profiling and Realtime CommerceChoices

-   1. A method programmed in a non-transitory memory of a device    comprising:    -   a. performing analytics of user interactivity between a user and        online content; and    -   b. providing a commerce choice based on the analytics.-   2. The method of clause 1 wherein the analytics includes at least    one of site and experience analytics, video analytics, commerce    analytics and user analytics.-   3. The method of clause 2 wherein site and experience analytics    includes monitoring user selections of content.-   4. The method of clause 2 wherein video analytics includes    determining types of videos watched by categorizing each video, and    when a user selects a video, incrementing a count in a category.-   5. The method of clause 2 wherein commerce analytics includes    monitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information.-   6. The method of clause 2 wherein user analytics includes tracking    user actions and user information.-   7. The method of clause 1 wherein providing the commerce choice    based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up with a coupon    and/or purchasing capabilities.-   8. The method of clause 1 wherein providing the commerce choice    includes displaying an additional video or audio for rent or    purchase.-   9. An apparatus comprising:    -   a. a non-transitory memory for storing an application, the        application for:        -   i. performing analytics of user interactivity between a user            and online content; and        -   ii. providing a commerce choice based on the analytics; and    -   b. a processing component coupled to the memory, the processing        component configured for processing the application.-   10. The apparatus of clause 9 wherein the analytics includes at    least one of site and experience analytics, video analytics,    commerce analytics and user analytics.-   11. The apparatus of clause 10 wherein site and experience analytics    includes monitoring user selections of content.-   12. The apparatus of clause 10 wherein video analytics includes    determining types of videos watched by categorizing each video, and    when a user selects a video, incrementing a count in a category.-   13. The apparatus of clause 10 wherein commerce analytics includes    monitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information.-   14. The apparatus of clause 10 wherein user analytics includes    tracking user actions and user information.-   15. The apparatus of clause 9 wherein providing the commerce choice    based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up with a coupon    and/or purchasing capabilities.-   16. The apparatus of clause 9 wherein providing the commerce choice    includes displaying an additional video or audio for rent or    purchase.    -   17. A system comprising:    -   a. a first device configured for performing analytics of user        interactivity between a user and online content; and    -   b. a second device configured for providing a commerce choice        based on the analytics.-   18. The system of clause 17 wherein the analytics includes at least    one of site and experience analytics, video analytics, commerce    analytics and user analytics.-   19. The system of clause 18 wherein site and experience analytics    includes monitoring user selections of content.-   20. The system of clause 18 wherein video analytics includes    determining types of videos watched by categorizing each video, and    when a user selects a video, incrementing a count in a category.-   21. The system of clause 18 wherein commerce analytics includes    monitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information.-   22. The system of clause 18 wherein user analytics includes tracking    user actions and user information.-   23. The system of clause 17 wherein providing the commerce choice    based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up with a coupon    and/or purchasing capabilities.-   24. The system of clause 17 wherein providing the commerce choice    includes displaying an additional video or audio for rent or    purchase.

The present invention has been described in terms of specificembodiments incorporating details to facilitate the understanding ofprinciples of construction and operation of the invention. Suchreference herein to specific embodiments and details thereof is notintended to limit the scope of the claims appended hereto. It will bereadily apparent to one skilled in the art that other variousmodifications may be made in the embodiment chosen for illustrationwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedby the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method programmed in a non-transitory memory ofa device comprising: a. performing analytics of user interactivitybetween a user and online content; and b. providing a commerce choicebased on the analytics.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the analyticsincludes at least one of site and experience analytics, video analytics,commerce analytics and user analytics.
 3. The method of claim 2 whereinsite and experience analytics includes monitoring user selections ofcontent.
 4. The method of claim 2 wherein video analytics includesdetermining types of videos watched by categorizing each video, and whena user selects a video, incrementing a count in a category.
 5. Themethod of claim 2 wherein commerce analytics includes monitoring clicksof content and monitoring sales information.
 6. The method of claim 2wherein user analytics includes tracking user actions and userinformation.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein providing the commercechoice based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up with a couponand/or purchasing capabilities.
 8. The method of claim 1 whereinproviding the commerce choice includes displaying an additional video oraudio for rent or purchase.
 9. An apparatus comprising: a. anon-transitory memory for storing an application, the application for:i. performing analytics of user interactivity between a user and onlinecontent; and ii. providing a commerce choice based on the analytics; andb. a processing component coupled to the memory, the processingcomponent configured for processing the application.
 10. The apparatusof claim 9 wherein the analytics includes at least one of site andexperience analytics, video analytics, commerce analytics and useranalytics.
 11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein site and experienceanalytics includes monitoring user selections of content.
 12. Theapparatus of claim 10 wherein video analytics includes determining typesof videos watched by categorizing each video, and when a user selects avideo, incrementing a count in a category.
 13. The apparatus of claim 10wherein commerce analytics includes monitoring clicks of content andmonitoring sales information.
 14. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein useranalytics includes tracking user actions and user information.
 15. Theapparatus of claim 9 wherein providing the commerce choice based on theanalytics includes displaying a pop-up with a coupon and/or purchasingcapabilities.
 16. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein providing thecommerce choice includes displaying an additional video or audio forrent or purchase.
 17. A system comprising: a. a first device configuredfor performing analytics of user interactivity between a user and onlinecontent; and b. a second device configured for providing a commercechoice based on the analytics.
 18. The system of claim 17 wherein theanalytics includes at least one of site and experience analytics, videoanalytics, commerce analytics and user analytics.
 19. The system ofclaim 18 wherein site and experience analytics includes monitoring userselections of content.
 20. The system of claim 18 wherein videoanalytics includes determining types of videos watched by categorizingeach video, and when a user selects a video, incrementing a count in acategory.
 21. The system of claim 18 wherein commerce analytics includesmonitoring clicks of content and monitoring sales information.
 22. Thesystem of claim 18 wherein user analytics includes tracking user actionsand user information.
 23. The system of claim 17 wherein providing thecommerce choice based on the analytics includes displaying a pop-up witha coupon and/or purchasing capabilities.
 24. The system of claim 17wherein providing the commerce choice includes displaying an additionalvideo or audio for rent or purchase.